BJ Ojulari explains what he'll take away from Ed Orgeron entering Brian Kelly era

B.J. Ojulari and the LSU Tigers are entering a new era under Brian Kelly, but they’re taking lessons learned from Ed Orgeron with them, as well.

During SEC Media Days, the Tigers defender spoke to the media about what he’ll take away from Orgeron as LSU enters exciting times.

“There’s a lot to take away from the last two years,” began Ojulari. “I’ll say Coach O — he did an amazing job coaching us. We had a great, great staff, both years in my opinion.”

“But as a high level player, we just have to take away what we did wrong during the season and implement it into this season so we don’t make the same mistakes.”

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While Orgeron had immense success in Baton Rouge, it was evident his time ran out on him with the Tigers. Still, talented athletes like B.J. Ojulari are carrying inspiration from their former head coach moving forward.

BJ Ojulari recalls the process of LSU hiring Brian Kelly, provides early impressions

When LSU agreed to part ways with Ed Orgeron following the 2021 season, it left many players with questions about the future. Star defensive end BJ Ojulari watched with anticipation like many of his teammates as Brian Kelly took the reins and built his new roster.

During SEC media day, Brian Kelly selected BJ Ojulari as one of the player representatives who spoke about the transition and future outlook of the LSU program. He spoke at length about the past few months.

“When I heard, I think it was just off social media,” said Ojulari. “For a long time, everybody just had their guy in mind, had who they wanted to be the head coach. So Brian Kelly was really a shock to everybody. Nobody was really expecting him, but I trust Mr. Scott Woodward, our athletic director, and he believes coach Kelly can get the job done. So as a player, I’ve just got to follow that plan.”

While Kelly might not have been the obvious choice at LSU, Ojulari shared that he has already made a positive impact off the field which could create a better future for everyone.

“Graduate champions is a big motto for us now,” said Ojulari. “We take academics more seriously. As soon as coach Kelly came in, we raised out GPA by a certain amount of points – I don’t know the exact number – but the Spring semester was a great improvement in our team GPA. He’s definitely pushing academics on us. I know for a lot of guys, academics is very important in their families.”